Sometimes, I enjoy reading mindless fluff. And that’s exactly what the Abby Cooper: Psychic Eye mystery series is. Never deep, complicated, or overwhelmingly reeling, I found the first three books in the series to be fun and easy. I took them at face value and didn’t judge harshly. After all, they entertained me.

I ignored Abby’s annoying behavior (e.g. a woman never tells a man that she sat by the phone all week waiting for him to call – unless she’s a Victoria Laurie heroine named Abby Cooper). A woman also never makes a scene in public over tedious mishaps on her boyfriend’s part – another one of Abby’s favorite pastimes.

Nevertheless, I got over it, also ignoring the unrealistic characters, such as Abby’s richer-than-Bill-Gates sister, Cat, who always seems to show up for… absolutely no reason at all. I’ve seen Abby’s sister described as “a beloved character” on other reader reviews. Personally, I sigh in exasperation any time she she’s even mentioned, and pray to the heavens that Laurie doesn’t find some humdrum reason for Cat to make an appearance. Which happens in every single book. Even though she lives a plane ride away.

Then there’s Abby’s boyfriend, Dutch, an FBI agent whose personality changes from book to book. He’s either depicted as the perfect boyfriend, and also the most easygoing boyfriend to put up with Abby’s erratic behavior, or, come the next book in the series, the most thoughtless ass Laurie could dream up.

Mostly, however, I’ve always ignored (which is VERY hard for me to do) the run-on sentences, comma splices, occasional missing period, and other numerous grammatical errors.

Then comes Killer Insight, the fourth book in the series. Like I said, I take these books for the mindless fluff that I figure they’re supposed to be and focus on the fact that they entertain me. Killer Insight, however, is slow, boring, predictable, and, quite frankly, almost painful. Without entertainment, the annoying characters, weak writing, and lack of depth make each page excruciatingly agonizing to get through. Even making it from one sentence to the next seems like a hardship that no reader should have to bear.

The plot: After a fight with Dutch (he's inconsiderate and completely oblivious to it this time around), Abby finds herself bolting to Colorado to be a bridesmaid in an old friend's wedding. But things take a nasty turn when the other bridesmaids start disappearing and all evidence turns to the groom. Seems like a good enough premise for some light chick lit, right? Well, it's a shame what could have been.

The first three books are exciting, fast-paced thrillers, all worth reading if you enjoy a guilty pleasure now and then. But Killer Insight falls flat. If you’re a fan of the series, read the fourth installment at your own risk. But don’t feel bad if you have to put the book aside and skip on to the next. You won’t miss a thing. Promise.

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